Wig foundation and wig

ABSTRACT

The wig foundation of stretch material has a center panel extending from forehead back over the crown of the head and terminating in a depending nape portion. A side panel of semicircular-like shape is attached to each edge of the center panel and two offset elongated elastic members offset at their adjacent ends are attached to the bottom edge of the side panels and ear slots are formed at each side with stiffener members along the forward and rear edges of the ear slots. A weft of hair is attached underneath and on top of the forehead edge of the center panel. A weft is attached in a spiral manner in the crown area and down to the forehead end. Groups of wefts are attached across the back of the foundation below the crown area and from side edge to side edge with some turned under a short amount at their ends. A group of wefts are also attached next above the nape portion which also has wefts attached extending from side edge to side edge.

United States Patent [191 Abbott et al.

[ Jan. 29, 1974 WIG FOUNDATION AND WIG [75] Inventors: Dominic C.Abbott, Pittsburgh, Pa.;

Godfrey Chen, I-Iong Kong [73] Assignee: Abbott Tresses Inc.,Pittsburgh, Pa.

[22] Filed: May 11, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 252,944

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation of Set. No. 25,446, April3, 1970,

abandoned.

[52] US. Cl. 132/54, 132/5 [51] Int. Cl A4lg 5/00 [58] Field ofSearch... 132/54, 53, 7, 9, 5; 2/197-198 [56] References Cited UNITEDSTATES PATENTS 3,509,889 5/1970 Frishman et a1. 132/53 3,046,999 7/l962Lint 132/54 3,474,767 10/1969 Ito 132/53 3,521,648 7/1970 Capparelli etall 132/53 Primary Examiner-Louis G. Mancene Assistant ExaminerGregoryE. McNeill Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Samuel J. Duboff; George A. Mentis;David J. Mugford [5 7 ABSTRACT The wig foundation of stretch materialhas a center panel extending from forehead back over the crown of thehead and terminating in a depending nape portion. A side panel ofsemicircular-like shape is attached to each edge of the center panel andtwo offset elongated elastic members offset at their adjacent ends areattached to the bottom edge of the side panels and ear slots are formedat each side with stiffener members along the forward and rear edges ofthe ear slots. A weft of hair is attached underneath and on top of theforehead edge of the center panel. A weft is attached in a spiral mannerin the crown area and down to the forehead end. Groups of wefts areattached across the back of the foundation below the crown area and fromside edge to side edge with some turned under a short amount at theirends. A group of wefts are also attached next above the nape portionwhich also has wefts attached extending from side edge to side edge.

5 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures WIG FOUNDATION AND WIG This application is acontinuation of Ser. No. 25, 446 now abandoned.

An object of this invention is to provide a wig foundation that has amore natural and comfortable fit.

Another object is to provide a wig foundation with elongated elasticmembers along each side and adjacent an ear slot.

A further object of the invention is to provide a wig foundation with adistinct depending nape portion at the neck end of the wig.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a wig foundationwith a center panel extending from forehead front end where it is thewidth of temple to temple and is of a uniform width to the crown areawhere it decreases in width in a gradual manner to where its rear endhas a width about 82 percent of its forehead width and has two sidepanels attached to the side edges of the center panel, where is formed aridge line, the side panels being provided with elongated elasticmembers and ear slots.

Yet a still further object of the invention is to provide a wigfoundation with wefts of hair attached that provide for a more naturaleffect and including a distinct depending nape portion at the neck withwefts attached that bring the hair further down the nape of the neck andcreate a more natural effect of hairline at the nape of the neck.

For a more complete understanding of the nature and scope of myinvention, reference is had to the specification and claims which followand to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the wig foundation;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation looking at the right-hand side of a wig onthe head of the wearer with strips representing wefts of hair attachedto a wig foundation as shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a view at the left of FIG. 2.

Throughout the description, like reference numbers refer to similarparts.

WIG FOUNDATION The wig foundation in FIG. 1 is generally indicated at10. It is made up of stretch material, elongated elastic strips, certainpiping material and stiffeners as will be described.

There is a center panel 1 1 that extends from the forehead end where theforehead edge 12 extends from temple areas T at each end. The centerpanel 11 extends back over the crown area and has a width about the sameas at the forehead edge 12 whereas at the back of the crown area itgradually decreases in width to its rear end at a depending distinctnape portion 13 of the neck where it is about 82 percent of the width atforehead edge 12. The depending nape portion 13 is about one inch inwidth at its side edges 13 which are an extension of the side edges 14of the center panel. As the center panel extends over the head, the sideedges 14 take the shape of an approximate semicircle. To each ear sideof the center panel, there is a side panel generally indicated at 15that is generally semicircular in shape and has its convexsemicircular-like edge attached to the adjacent side edges 14 of thecenter panel thereby forming a ridge line at each side along theattachment to the edges 14 of the center panel.

Still referring to FIG. 1 adjacently above each side edge 13 of the napeportion 13 and to the adjacent side edge of the center panel is attachedone end 16a of an elongated rectangular shaped first elastic member 16which has stretch in its longitudinal direction. This first elasticmember 16 has its lower elongated side extending upwardly and forwardlyabove the ear area where the ear projects from the head. The other endof member 16 lies just forward of the ear area and is attached to theadjacent portion of the side member 15 as is the other elongated edge ofmember 16. Along end 16a of the member 16 and the inline adjacent edge13' of the nape portion 13 there is secured an elongated narrow firststiffener member 17. At the other end 16b of the first elastic member 16is attached a second elongated narrow stiffener member 18 that projectsdownwardly a distance about the same length of side edge 13' of the napeportion and is generally parallel thereto. The edge 13 of the napeportion with the lower elongated edge of first elastic member 16 and theprojecting end of stiffener member 18 form an ear slot for receiving theear of the wearer.

Extending upwardly and forwardly from the projecting portion of secondstiffener member 18 and from the adjacent lower end of edge 16b of firstelastic member 16 there is attached a second elongated elastic membergenerally indicated at 19. The upper elongated edge 19a of member 19extends at an approximate right angle to the end 16b of member 16 to apoint 19b spaced just beyond the adjacent edge 14 of the center panel.This edge 19a is attached to the adjacent edge portion of the side panel15. The other end of the second elastic member 19 extends from the point19b to the adjacent temple end of the forehead edge 12 of the centermember 11. This end 190 is attached to the adjacent portions of thecenter and side panels. The remaining side 19d of the second elongatedelastic member 19 extends downwardly and rearwardly from the.

lower end of end 19c to the bottom end of the second stiffener l8 andthis edge is termed, depending temple edge. The wig foundation isself-standing and holds its shape resembling a somewhat blocked effectinstead of the heretofore beret-like effect of other wigs.

The wig foundation and the wig formed therefrom is held on the head ofthe wearer with a natural appearing and comfortable fit by the stretcheffect of the first and second elongated elastic members 16 and 19combining with the effect of the stretch material of the center panel 11and side panels 15 and the depending nape portion 13 provides a naturaleffect for the hairline of the wefts of hair attached thereto at thenape of the neck as will be explained.

Wefts Attachment To Foundation In FIGS. 2 and 3 for clarity the weftsare shown without hair attached and the representation of the wefts andwhere they are attached to the foundation is illustrated by the whitebands appearing on the stretch background of the foundation. Thebrackets having the inch markings designate the approximate length ofthe hair attached to those wefts spanned by the respective brackets. Thebrackets with reference numbers designate first, second, third andfourth groups of wefts as will be explained.

At the forehead end 12 of the wig foundation center panel 11, asdescribed in FIG. 1, there is attached to the underside of the foreheadedge, extending from temple to temple, a weft 30 having hair of about 3inches in length. On the top side of the forehead edge there is attacheda weft 31 having hair of about 3% inch length.

Starting adjacent one side temple at T and spaced adjacently upward fromthe temple end of the forehead weft 31 is a weft 32 having hair ofapproximately 3% inch length. This weft 32 spirals around the lowerportion of the crown for about six spiral turns, spaced about a quarterof an inch apart, and terminates a distance spaced down from the top orpeak of the crown. This spiral weft 32 is continued by a weft 32a havinghair of about 4 inches in length about six turns closely together to atermination at the peak of the crown. Extending from a portion spacedabove the temple end T of the forehead weft 31 at each end is a weft 31aabout one inch long having hair approximately 4 inches in length andhaving its other end adjacent the uppermost weft of a first group ofwefts to be described.

A first group of spaced apart wefts 33 having hair of about 3 inchlength extends below the spiral weft 32 across the back of the headbelow the crown area. These wefts 33 are attached to the foundation withthe ends turned under about inch on the depending temple edge 19d of thesecond elongated elastic member 19 to which the wefts 33 are likewiseattached. The uppermost of these wefts 33, spaced below the lower turnof spiral weft 32, has its ends adjacent the temple ends of the foreheadweft 31. These wefts 33 are slightly more closely spaced in the secondelongated elastic member 19 than they are in their spacing of about 7 1inch as they extend about the rear of the head.

A single weft 34 having hair of about 2 inches in length extends spacedbelow the lowermost weft of the first group of wefts 33. It has its endsturned under about /4 inch where they are attached to the dependingtemple edge 19d and it extends along and is attached to the lower end ofthe second elongated elastic member 19 and to the projecting end portionof the stiffener 18. There is positioned between the single weft 34 atits ends where it is relatively widely spaced below the lowermost one ofthe first group of wefts 33 thereabove, two wefts 35 of about two inchesin length and having hair of about 2 inches in length. These wefts 35are attached to the second elongated elastic member 19 and have theirends turned under about A inch on the depending temple edge 19a.

A second group of wefts 36 of about four in number and having hair about2 inches in length are spaced below the single weft 34 and extend inparallel spaced relation thereto. These wefts 36 have their endsadjacent each other and are attached to the upper portion of the firstelongated elastic member 16.

A third group of wefts 37 about three in number having hair about 1%inches in length are attached to the foundation as are the other weftsand extend spaced apart parallel and below the second group of wefts 36.The end portions of the third group of wefts 37 are attached to thelower portion of the first elongated elastic members 16.

A fourth group of wefts 38 about five in number and having hair of about1% inch length extend spaced apart and parallel to each other in thegroup and are attached to the foundation and have their respective endsterminating adjacent the lowermost weft of said third group of wefts 37thereabove.

The depending nape 13 of the foundation has a weft 39 attached along itslower edge. Spaced above this lower weft 39 are two more wefts 40attached to the depending nape 13. The end portions of these wefts 40turn upwardly and the uppermost one terminates at the ends of thelowermost wefts of the third and fourth group of'wefts 37 and 38 whichterminate adjacent each other.

There is provided a wig foundation and weft positioning thereon thatprovides a comfortable fit for the wearer and a natural effect. Thewefts positioned in the temple areas extend generally parallel to thetemple and wrap around the edge of the foundation causing the hair inthe temple area to lie both forward and if desired in a reversedirection away from the face of the wearer. This wig and foundation notonly provide cover of the hairline of the wearer at the temple area butalso the hair can be combed back away from the face of the wearer stillconcealing the wearers own hair. This wig has a distinct depending napeportion at the neck providing for extra length which brings the hairfurther down the nape of the neck and creates a more natural effect ofhairline at the nape of the neck.

What is claimed is:

l. A wig foundation for wefts of hair to be attached comprising athree-panel cap, said cap having two side panels and a center panel,each of said panels being made of a flexible stretch fabric, the centerpanel extending from the front of the cap over the crown thereof to therear of the cap and defining at the front of the cap a portion whichabuts the forehead of the wearer and which extends thereacross, saidcenter panel defining at the rear of the cap a portion which abuts thenape of the neck of the wearer and which extends thereacross; each saidside panel having an upper edge generally semicircular in shape and eachside panel being secured along said semicircular edge to the adjacentedge of the center panel; an elastic member of generally rectangularshape stretchable in its lengthwise direction and positioned lengthwiseacross a lower portion of each of said side panels and being securedthereto so as to fit above the ear of the wearer, the rear edge of saidelastic member being additionally secured to the adjacent edge of saidcenter panel; a stiffener member affixed to the forward edge of eachelastic member and to the foundation at the side panel, and extendingdownwardly and beyond the bottom of the elastic member so as to definewith the elastic member a slot which fits about the ear of the wearer;and a reinforcing member of generally triangular shape having one sideaffixed to the foundation at a lower portion of each side panelforwardly of the stiffener member, each said reinforcing memberextending downwardly to the lower end of the stiffener member and havinganother side attached thereto to define a generally projecting tab whichfits forwardly of the ear of the wearer, whereby the elastic member, thestiffener member and the reinforcing member together form means at eachside of the cap for holding the foundation in a close fit firmly on andagainst the head of the wearer.

2. A foundation in accordance with claim 1 in which the combination ofthe reinforcing member, the stiffener member and the elastic memberspans from the rear edge of each side panel to the forward edge of eachpanel.

3. A foundation in accordance with claim 1 in which the center panel isgenerally uniform in width from front to back.

4. A foundation in accordance with claim 1 in which the portion of thecenter panel which abuts the nape of the neck of the wearer extendsdownwardly beyond the elastic members.

5. A wig comprising a foundation in accordance with claim 1 and wefts ofhair sewn to the foundation.

V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION pg 3,788,332Dated January 29,1974

Dominic C. Abbott et a1. Inventor(s) It is certified that error appearsin the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are herebycorrected as shown below:

On the first page, the assignee should read Abbott Tresses, Inc;.,Pittsburgh, Pa.; by said Dominic C.

Abbott Signed and sealed this 24th day of September 1974.

(SEAL) Attest:

McCOY M. GIBSON JR. Attesting Officer C MARSHALL DANN Commissioner of-Patents FORM PO-1050 (10-59) "uscwmc 5037M," ".5. OVERNHENT PIIN'INGOFFICE ll. S-334,

1. A wig foundation for wefts of hair to be attached comprising athree-panel cap, said cap having two side panels and a center panel,each of said panels being made of a flexible stretch fabric, the centerpanel extending from the front of the cap over the crown thereof to therear of the cap and defining at the front of the cap a portion whichabuts the forehead of the wearer and which extends thereacross, saidcenter panel defining at the rear of the cap a portion which abuts thenape of the neck of the wearer and which extends thereacross; each saidside panel having an upper edge generally semicircular in shape and eachside panel being secured along said semicircular edge to the adjacentedge of the center panel; an elastic member of generally rectangularshape stretchable in its lengthwise direction and positioned lengthwiseacross a lower portion of each of said side panels and being securedthereto so as to fit above the ear of the wearer, the rear edge of saidelastic member being additionally secured to the adjacent edge of saidcenter panel; a stiffener member affixed to the forward edge of eachelastic member and to the foundation at the side panel, and extendingdownwardly and beyond the bottom of the elastic member so as to definewith the elastic member a slot which fits about the ear of the wearer;and a reinforcing member of generally triangular shape having one sideaffixed to the foundation at a lower portion of each side panelforwardly of the stiffener member, each said reinforcing memberextending downwardly to the lower end of the stiffener member and havinganother side attached thereto to define a generally projecting tab whichfits forwardly of the ear of the wearer, whereby the elastic member, thestiffener member and the reinforcing member together form means at eachside of the cap for holding the foundation in a close fit firmly on andagainst the head of the wearer.
 2. A foundation in accordance with claim1 in which the combination of the reinforcing member, the stiffenermember and the elastic member spans from the rear edge of each sidepanel to the forward edge of each panel.
 3. A foundation in accordancewith claim 1 in which the center panel is generally uniform in widthfrom front to back.
 4. A foundation in accordance with claim 1 in whichthe portion of the center panel which abuts the nape of the neck of thewearer extends downwardly beyond the elastic members.
 5. A wigcomprising a foundation in accordance with claim 1 and wefts of hairsewn to the foundation.